What is Inquiry Science

Inquiry science is constructed with hands-on activities that encourage scientific thought processes, rather than the memorization of facts from textbooks. Inquiry based, hands-on science is a proven methodology that not only increases students’ skills in science, but also improve critical thinking, literacy and math skills. Learning is contextualized as students are experiencing science topics and concepts with meaningful connections, not as an isolated activity.

In SFSI classrooms, the teacher can be found moving from group to group to monitor and check for understanding as children ask questions, question answers, record data, write observations, ask more questions and work toward their own conclusions. Within this cooperative learning environment, students are encouraged to investigate ideas, formulate questions, make predictions, apply scientific techniques, compare results, and analyze data as well as demonstrate their understanding by reporting their observations to others.

Inquiry-based science instruction is “the creation of a classroom where students are engaged in (essentially) open-ended, student-centered, hands-on activities. This means that students must make at least some decisions about what they are doing and what their work means – thinking along the way” (Colburn2003).